Month: November 2024

Chargers Waive K Roberto Aguayo

Roberto Aguayo will now be searching for his fifth team in the past year or so. ESPN’s Field Yates tweets that the Chargers have waived the kicker. The move seems to indicate that veteran Caleb Sturgis has won the starting gig.

The Buccaneers (in)famously traded up in the second-round of the 2016 draft to select the Florida State product, surrendering a third- and fourth-rounder to make the pick. Aguayo struggled mightily during his rookie campaign, connecting on a league-worst 71-percent of his field goals, and he was waived by the Buccaneers last summer. Since that time, the 24-year-old has had stints with the Bears, Panthers, and Chargers, but he didn’t see the field once during the 2017 campaign.

However, it appears that Aguayo may be righting the ship. The kicker looked plenty competent during the preseason, connecting on all six of his field goal attempts and all three of his extra points. Teams are naturally wary of his horrendous rookie season, but Aguayo is still plenty young. As the regular season progresses, a team will surely take a look at the kicker.

Sturgis, 29, signed a two-year contract with the Chargers back in March. He had spent the past three seasons with the Eagles, although he was limited to only one game last year. His best season came in 2016, when he connected on 85.4-percent of his field goal attempts and 30 of his 31 extra point attempts.

Bills Release WR Corey Coleman

Corey Coleman‘s brief tenure in Buffalo has come to an end. NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reports (via Twitter) that the Bills are releasing the wideout.

Following a pair of underwhelming seasons in Cleveland, Coleman was traded to the Bills earlier this month for a seventh-rounder. The move seemed to be of little risk for the Bills, who were hoping the receiver would show some of the promise that made him a 15th-overall pick in 2016 draft. However, he 24-year-old didn’t end up showing a whole lot in the preseason with his new team, hauling in only three receptions for seven yards.

After being traded at the beginning of the preseason, Coleman seemingly didn’t have enough time to crack Buffalo’s roster. With the wideout out of the picture, any one of Andre Holmes, Jeremy Kerley, or Kaelin Clay could push for the third receiver spot behind Kelvin Benjamin and Zay Jones.

Coleman had shown intermittent promise during his time with the Browns, although he had only managed to compile 56 receptions for 718 yards and five touchdowns in 19 career games. The former Baylor standout struggled with injuries — most notably, two hand breaks — and he saw the GM who drafted him ousted last year. Coleman was signed through the 2019 season and would have been under Bills control through 2020 via the fifth-year option.

Of course, considering Coleman’s brilliance in college, some time will surely take a shot at the wide receiver now that he’s a free agent. There are presumably plenty of receiver-needy teams that would be willing to sign the 5-foot-11, 185-pound wideout.

David Johnson, Cardinals Not Close To Deal

While there may be some optimism regarding David Johnson‘s long-term future in Arizona, it doesn’t sound like the running back will be signing an extension any time soon. Jason La Canfora tweets that the two sides have a “long ways to go to complete a deal.” A deal isn’t expected to be signed prior to the regular season.

While this news isn’t all that surprising, Johnson had said earlier this month that he was “encouraged” by the extension talks. The running back previously sat out Cardinals minicamp in a bit of a mini hold-out, although it didn’t take him all that long to report to camp. Johnson is scheduled to earn a base salary of $1.8MM in the final year of his deal, and after losing the 2017 season due to injury, he’s understandably concerned about his financial security. The Pro Bowler may be subject to the whim of the organization and under their control through 2020 thanks to the franchise tag.

Rams running back Todd Gurley reset the running back market last month by agreeing to a new deal which contains a $14.375MM annual value and $21.95MM in guarantees, although Johnson probably won’t eclipse that contract. Not only is Johnson coming off a lost season, but he’s nearly three years older than Gurley. Still, a contract which tops double-digits annually should be expected for Johnson.

The 26-year-old had a breakout campaign in 2016, rushing for 1,239 yards and 16 touchdowns. He also added another 80 receptions for 879 yards and four scores, earning him a place on the first-team All-Pro list. Johnson dislocated his wrist during the Cardinals’ 2017 season-opener, forcing him to miss the rest of the season.

Raiders Trade Khalil Mack To Bears

Khalil Mack is heading to the Windy City. The Raiders have agreed to send Mack, a 2020 second-round round pick, and a conditional 2020 fifth-round pick to Chicago in exchange for a 2019 first-round pick, 2020 first-round pick, a 2020 third-round pick, and a 2019 sixth-round pick.

Furthermore,NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport Rapoport adds (via Twitter) that the Bears have permission to negotiate a long-term deal with Mack. They’re expected to ink him to a deal that would eclipse the record-breaking deal that Aaron Donald signed with the Rams yesterday.

We heard late last night that the chances of a Mack deal were “very real,” with the Jets and Browns among the teams connected to the defensive end (SNY’s Ralph Vacchiano confirms that the Jets called about Mack). However, it sounds like there was a difference in opinions among the Raiders staff, with owner Mark Davis apparently in support of keeping the disgruntled 27-year-old. On the flip side, head coach Jon Gruden was “far more open” to the idea, believing the financial commitment would be far better used on multiple players (via SI’s Michael Silver on Twitter).

NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero tweets that several potential suitors dropped out of the sweepstakes last night as the Bears seemingly ramped up their pursuit, with the Raiders telling other teams that they had at least two first-rounders on the table. Rapoport tweets that the reported asking price was two firsts and a player, a price that only Chicago was willing to pay.

Mack was engaged in a contract dispute with Oakland throughout the preseason, and it was expected to last into the regular season. One of the NFL’s best pass-rushers, Mack is scheduled to earn $13.846MM in 2018 before hitting free agency next spring. If Chicago is going to make him the highest-paid defender in the NFL, then the contract would need to exceed the deal that Donald signed with the Rams yesterday. That contract is worth $135MM, including $87MM in rolling guarantees. The deal represents the richest defensive deal in NFL history.

Mack has been a wrecking ball since entering the league as a first-round pick in 2014. A three-time Pro Bowler and two-time first-team All-Pro, Mack has totaled 40.5 sacks over his first four NFL seasons. In 2017, Pro Football Focus graded Mack as the NFL’s seventh-best edge defender. A deal for Mack certainly indicates that the Bears are ready to win now, as no team would give up such a haul if they weren’t eyeing the playoffs. Mack will slide into the starting lineup alongside either Akiem Hicks or Jonathan Bullard.